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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · pass · clip · kid · rash · deal · foot · rule

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. kid — to tease
  3. clip — a video
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. foot — a measure
  7. rule — government
  8. clip — to cut
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. kid — child
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. rule — a law
  17. deal — to handle
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — the season
  22. pass — a permit
  23. clip — for paper
  24. deal — a big deal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com